This morning someone asked me where she could purchase a Kindle and, with a somewhat blank look, I said, “At Amazon of course.”
But she wanted to know where she could pick one up and play with it and buy it in person. So I peeked around, and here are a few stores that carry the Kindle:
- Best Buy
- Target
- Staples
That said, you don’t have to pay tax or shipping (if you select the slower shipping option) if you order online through Amazon. Also your device will come already registered to your Amazon account.
The customer service is good if you order online, and there are no lines to stand in for returns or problems. When I ordered my Kindle, it came DOA, so I called Amazon up, and they shipped a new one out pronto (it came about two days later).
Which Kindle should you buy?
As I write this blog post, you have three options (five if you include the cheaper with-advertising models) The most popular Kindles are the 6-inch-screen wifi model and the 6-inch-screen 3G model (which includes wifi). I have the latter model myself. At first, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever use the 3G feature (meaning you can download books and get on the Kindle’s internet browser anywhere that you can get on a cell phone), but I can’t count the number of times I’ve downloaded new books from places without wifi. Road trips (don’t worry, if I’m reading in the car, I’m the passenger, not the driver!) are the main spot.
If you prefer a larger, tablet-sized model with a bigger screen (9.7″ display), you can get the Kindle DX; it also comes with wifi and 3G capabilities. It costs quite a bit more, though, and I personally think the screen on the 6″-model is fine. I’m a glasses-wearing geek, and I just increase the font size if I want to read without my glasses on.
Right now, the 6-inch wifi Kindle is the cheapest option at $139, and the 3G model is $189. The DX is a hefty $379.
Ah, but wait. What about those with-advertising models I mentioned?
Yes, you can get cheaper Kindles if you’re willing to put up with ads. You can save $50 and get the Kindle 3G that includes “Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers” for $139 ($50 off). The cheapest option altogether is the Kindle Wi-Fi with “Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers”. That one comes in at $114, thus saving you $25.
I haven’t seen one of the Kindles with ads personally, but here’s a blurb on what all that entails:
“Special offers and sponsored screensavers display on the Kindle screensaver and on the bottom of the home screen—they don’t interrupt reading…” They send coupons related to Amazon products and ebooks, and they say, “Our goal is to display sponsored screensavers that you want to see.” You can vote on prospective screensavers via the Amazon AdMash Kindle app (though the app itself doesn’t seem to be a big hit with owners).
The models with advertising weren’t around when I bought my Kindle, but I’m sure I would have avoided them. It doesn’t seem like much of a discount for something you’ll use every day and have for years, but the people who have purchased the cheaper Kindles don’t seem to mind the ads.
Here are a few comments from a forum post at Amazon where someone was asking owners to chime in on whether the ads were a pain or not:
“You see the special offers as a screen saver when you put your Kindle to sleep. You also see them at the bottom of the home page where all of your book titles are listed. They never appear while you are reading. That is, they are NOT popup ads. I feel that they are not a problem at all. To me it was well worth the $50 savings.”
“I have a K3 G3 SO and a K3 WiFi and I much prefer the ads on the So than the Dead Authors on WiFi. Same price $139.”
“I actually really like the offers because they have some great savings on things from amazon.com and even some good deals for e-books! I think it is definitely worth saving the $50!”
“I jumped on the humor book for $1, if the ads continue to offer great things like that then I’ll be thrilled I picked this version. I chose it initially because I’m a broke med school student, now I’m thinking the benefit will be greater than the $50 I saved.”
What are your thoughts, Kindle-owning readers? Did you buy a model with ads, or did you choose to spend more to avoid that feature?
I have one of these and the ads are so unobtrusive that I honestly forget they’re there. They appear on the holding screen. That’s actually quite nice sometimes because it tells me about deals that amazon is having, and once it reminded me that Pan Am was going to be on that night. Then the other advert is a tiny banner along the bottom of the home page. There are no advertisements at all when you are using the kindle to browse amazon or when you are reading a book or using active content. The advertisements don’t flash or do anything bothersome. They look much like newspaper ads.
I got to say I was surprised because when I bought the ad version of the kindle I thought there would be way more advertising on it than that. I’m so chuffed with it I bought my fiance one for his birthday.
Thanks for chiming in, Sarah!
I thought the ad-supported version would be something to avoid myself, but now I’m a little jealous since I’ve learned people are getting coupons for the Kindle Store in there. 😀
I don’t have an e-reader (yet), but I would have thought that the ads would be annoying. Looking at your post though, and Sarah’s comment, I’m starting to think they might actually be a bonus. Who would’ve guessed?
My thoughts exactly, Ava Jae.
I’ve done all my Kindling so far on my iPhone and would like a bigger screen, so all this info is great. Thanks!
Lindsay, My husband bought me a Kindle with the ads for Mothers day. At first I was annoyed becuase the regular screen savers were so fun to look at but after the first day I don’t even notice. I might look at it when I turn the Kindle on but now it’s just part of the experience and I never even think about it. I’ve also seen ads for free audio books and next time I’m going to try that too.
Ah, are they Audible audiobooks? Those guys keep sending me free trials, and I’m tempted to give them a try. 🙂
I would absolutely buy one with ads, as long as they are as unobtrusive as they sound. (As of today, you can get an ad-version for only $79 — as long as you live in the US) I can hardly believe it! Of course that price, and the Kindle Touch aren’t available to me yet since I live in Canada. However I’m crossing my fingers that they will coming here very soon! I would get the $99 Kindle Touch with ads in a heartbeat!
Hah, they must be lowering their prices in anticipation of the Kindle Fire. It looks like they are planning to do a $99 ad-sponsored version of the Touch: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2393731,00.asp#fbid=5TWY0elPGhz
I wonder if they’ll have a cheaper ad-sponsored version of the Kindle Fire. I’m more tempted by that. 😉
Thought I’d take some pictures of my kindle so y’all can see what the ads are like.
Here’s the holding screen, with the large advert -> http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v634/Mredria/IMG_20110928_111028.jpg
Here’s the home page, with the advert along the bottom -> http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v634/Mredria/IMG_20110928_111047.jpg
Here’s the Amazon Marketplace. As you can see, no ads there -> http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v634/Mredria/IMG_20110928_111150.jpg
And here’s what reading looks like. Not ads at all! -> http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v634/Mredria/IMG_20110928_111129.jpg
Thanks for the pictures, Sarah!
I don’t think the screensaver ads are any more annoying than the dead-literary-figures pictures. 😉
That’s great see, I’ve been wondering exactly what they are like! Thanks so much!
I was so excited when they released the new Kindles today, that I pre-ordered 2 of the Kindle Touch for my kids.
I have the previous Kindle and love it. Mine is without ads, but I don’t think I’d mind it with them, because it seems they offer $20 Amazon cards for $10, every once in awhile.
I think my favorite feature, living in the wilderness, is the 3G & WiFi. I always have a connection.